Trust
by Hellen says what's up
Summary: In which Mello 'surrenders' to the Task Force on one condition. Mr Soichiro Yagami is the only man who's allowed to see his face. Mello already knows that Kira has to be someone on the Task Force, and the only way to get to him, is by working with the Japanese police. No ships.
1. To the Task Force

**Trust**

**Summary: In which Mello surrenders to the Task Force on one condition. Mr Soichiro Yagami is the only man who's allowed to see his face. Mello already knows that Kira has to be someone on the Task Force, and the only way to get to him, is by working with the Japanese police.**

"Your real name is Mihael Keehl." Mello froze. Soichiro stared him down for what felt like eternity. For the first time in his life, Mello actually felt a little threatened. No. He felt weak. This couldn't be happening, not to him. Mello was meant to be the one to come out alive. He had everything worked out...now…was he really going to die a stupid and meaningless death in the back of an abandoned warehouse?

_Damn it…how did he find out?! Someone with the shinigami eyes must have seen me…maybe Snydar betrayed me…or, maybe Soichiro was somehow able to see my real name…but that makes no sense! Unless Soichiro is Kira…but that can't be right…maybe I was right to suspect that Kira is somehow working with the Task Force…wait a second…yes, that's got to be it! Kira has to be one of the men on the task force! How was Kira able to kill the director of the NPA? Only the Task Force were aware of his kidnapping, which means he has to be someone on the task force…I have to find some way to talk myself out of this. I've come this far…_

"Mello, surrender now, and I won't kill you. However, if you refuse to give in, I won't hesitate to write your name down." Soichiro said in his commanding voice.

Mello let a smirk creep onto the corner of his lip. "So you aren't Kira. Well that confirms my suspicions. If you were Kira, you would have already written my name down in the notebook." Mello let out a sigh. "Mr Yagami, there's no reason I should agree to come with you. Even if you don't kill me now, I'll be sentenced to death for what I've done…but you're in no position to be threatening me. If you try to write my name in the notebook, I'll just set this place off…though, I have some information you may find rather interesting."

"There's nothing about the notebook that we don't already know Mello." Soichiro stated. "And even if you do set the bombs off, I'll still end up with the notebook. You wouldn't achieve anything but broken bones. Now, surrender, or I swear I'll kill you right here, right now."

"Mr Yagami…what if I told you there's a way that both of us could get out alive and happy." Mello tightened his grip on the switch, just in case something was to happen.

"I'm not here to bargain with you Mello." Soichiro said firmly but calmly.

"Just hear me out." Mello snapped a piece of chocolate off his bar and leant back against the table. _I can't believe I'm saying this...this better be worth it. _"I'll surrender to the Task Force."

Soichiro looked at Mello with a hint of surprise. "Y-you will?"

"Yes, on two conditions. The first is that you let me help lead the Kira investigation. Believe it or not, I actually do know something about the notebook that you don't." Soichiro stood in silence for a moment. "I'm not a bad guy Mr Yagami. In fact, I already know that I'm going to be sentenced to death at one point or another. All I want is to catch Kira, and then I'll gladly face the death penalty. I want to bring Kira to justice as much as the next guy. Put your trust in me, and I'll put my trust in you."

_Why would Mello want to catch Kira with the help of the Japanese Task Force? Perhaps he knows that if he goes it alone, there's no way he'll be able to find him…but still, he's willing to directly face the death penalty just like that? _"And your other condition?" He asked.

"That you are the only member of the task force that is allowed to see my face. I know you're not Kira, which means I can honestly say I trust you…but listen to this. I'm at least 83% certain that someone on the task force is Kira. I'll explain my theory to you later…that is, if you accept my request."

"Mello, I've been over this with people before, and I'm not going over it with you. No one in the task force is Kira. We're certain of it."

"Of course you are." Mello rolled his eyes. "Do we have a deal or not?"

Soichiro narrowed his eyes. "So, if we abide to those rules, you'll come quietly?"

"Yes. I swear to it." Soichiro stared into Mello's darkened blue eyes for any signs of misrepresentation. He saw none.

"Fine. Drop the trigger." At this, Mello smiled and let the mechanism slip from his fingers. The sound of the trigger hitting the floor echoed through the room.

"You made a good choice Mr Yagami. You're wiser than you look."

"You can use my helmet to disguise your face. The others won't be able to see through the black visor." Soichiro handed Mello his helmet.

"By the way, Mr Yagami, I never intended to hurt your daughter." Soichiro took a step back, not too keen on discussing the topic. "I'm not a bad person. I'm a good guy. I was never going to kill Sayu. After you return to your family, please give her my humble apology."

"The past is the past, and if I'm going to have to trust you, I suppose it's behind me." Mello smiled at the statement and pulled the helmet and visor over his head. _Gaining the trust of the Task Force is my top priority at the moment…and from the looks of things, I'm in no position to start gaining authority…damn it. I hate being a subordinate…but I've got no choice._

As soon as Soichiro and Mello stepped through the door, Aizawa and Ide held him by the wrists and cuffed his arms behind his back. "Deputy Director-"

"Don't worry Matsuda. We've got this under control." Soichiro said serenely. "I'll explain later. Let's get back to the vehicle."

* * *

_Damn it! With Mello under protection from the task force, there's no way I'll be able to kill him! I can't just ask dad to write his name in the notebook. He seems to trust Mello, and asking him to kill him would look suspicious…and Mello suspects that Kira is someone in the task force. I guess it's all down to who can stake out the longest. Mello's really putting his neck out there, attempting to gain the trust of the Japanese Police…but, if I'm not careful, he might just win. I have to be cautious now…I'm walking a very fine line here._

_Mihael Keehl…I'll get you soon enough, just you wait._

* * *

"N, L's on the line for you." Near sighed in dismay

He willingly pressed the transfer button that sat upon his desk. "L, this is N."

"_I just thought I'd let you know that Mello is now in the hands of the NPA. He has decided to cooperate with us until we catch Kira, after in which he has agreed to face the death penalty."_

Near cocked his head to the side. _You let the Task Force catch you Mello? That's very unlike you…what do you plan on doing? This can only mean that Mello believes that he can somehow catch Kira through the NPA. Perhaps Mello also suspects that Kira is somehow related to the Task Force..._ "Is that so…I'd like to speak with him."

"_He's under interrogation with the Deputy Director at this moment. We'll have Mello personally contact you when he has the chance."_

_Mello, you're up to something. You must think you have some sort of leverage here. Is there something you know that I don't?_

He then abruptly disconnected the call. "Commander Rester, from now on I want us to focus on investigating the Task Force."

"What? Why?" He asked.

"Mello and I grew up together. He was the kind of guy that would rather die than lose. Mello would only surrender if he was certain that there was some way this could benefit him in the long run. From what I've gathered so far…I believe that Kira and the Task Force are somehow connected…I even have reason to believe that the second L, is in fact Kira."

Rester looked shocked that N would make such a huge assumption. "But-"

"When we first started this investigation, L was reluctant to cooperate with the SPK. Why? Because he didn't want us investigating them…if this was true, then that would probably mean Mello wants to join the Task Force to get as close as possible to Kira…it's a dangerous move…but knowing Mello, he'll probably find a way to make it work." Near began fiddling with a loose strand of his hair as he spoke, "even if I'm wrong, what difference will it make? We'll start again from scratch…and I'm okay with that. I trust Mello's judgement. Now, like I said, I want to focus the investigation on the Task Force."

**To be continued (possiblyyyyyyyyy)**


	2. To the SPK

**Here's Chapter 2! Honestly don't know where I'm going with this...but ummmmmmm...eh, whatever.**

* * *

"Is this really necessary?" Mello protested, pulling at the irritating restraints of the straitjacket sleeves. He'd been sat at the far end of the room with his left ankle chained tightly to the floor of the cell, restraining much movement. The room itself was simply a huge metal box, with one dim source of light hanging from the sealing.

"It's merely a precaution." Soichiro stated, sitting opposite the young blonde in a simple desk chair. "We can't risk your escape."

"You know I have no intention of leaving, Mr Yagami." Mello chuckled, "Though, I understand your concern. I am the one who killed more than half of the SPK members."

Soichiro tried to ignore the snide comment and shook his head. "As promised, we've removed all cameras from this interrogation room. No one will be watching, however, we have installed microphones around this unit, so L and the rest of the Task Force will be able to hear what is said in these meetings."

"Fair enough…" Mello leant back in his chair and crossed his unchained leg over the other. "Mr Yagami, like I said before, I have reason to believe that Kira is within the Japanese police. Even if he's not, then he has to be working with you in some way. Tell me, how did you obtain the Shinigami eyes?"

"To be honest with you, we have in fact gained contact with Kira. He sent us a death note; so that we could retrieve the other one from you…he also sent us a shinigami, Ryuk. He's the one who made the eye deal with me. Right now, we are in possession of two notebooks. The one Kira sent, and the one we retrieved from your men. "

Mello raised his eyebrows in alarm, but his expression soon softened as he let a smile crawl onto his lips. "I find it a little hard to believe that the Japanese Task Force would cooperate with Kira without a single fuss."

"Kira didn't want the death note to fall into the wrong hands." Soichiro stated, "L had specifically requested that we take on Kira's commands. It was the only way we could get the notebook back."

Mello's eyes shot up. "L? The second L agreed to work with Kira?"

"Um…well, yes. It was more of a group decision."

Mello stared at the wall for a moment, thinking through everything he'd witnessed so far. By the time he snapped out of his trance, he had a completely different tone set in his voice. "Change of plans Mr Yagami. Since I am now working with the Task Force on this investigation, I have a right to know who the second L is."

"How would you benefit from this information?" he questioned.

"Mr Yagami, I am at least 63% sure that the current L is in fact Kira." Mello smirked at the expression that was placed upon Soichiro's face.

"That's impossible." He insisted firmly. "Believe me, Mello, we've already been through this with the original L, and we have evidence to prove that Light is not Kira."

"Your last sentence has given away some valuable information Mr Yagami." Mello laughed in amusement. "Firstly, you just told me L's name is 'Light'. Secondly, you've just given away the fact that L once suspected Light of being Kira. Thirdly, you've told me that Light has somehow proved his innocence. My suspicion has now increased to at least 67%."

_Mihael Keehl…he seems too intelligent for his own good. _"Fine, you're right, L had once suspected him of being Kira...but it doesn't prove anything. We're certain that Light is innocent."

"Two of the rules written in the death note are fakes." Mello indicated with a grin. "Now, tell me, Mr Yagami, are you still completely sure of Light's innocence?"

* * *

_How could Mello possibly know of the fake rules? _Light contained his posture, but in reality, he was breaking down bit by bit. "Wait a second," Matsuda frowned. "How would two fake rules make any difference to Light?"

"If the 13 day rule was a fake, then that would mean Light could no longer be proven innocent. Those days he spent in confinement would be completely meaningless." Aizawa sighed. _If Mello's telling the truth about these fake rules, then that would mean Light could still be Kira…in fact, it's rather likely._

"How do we know Mello's not lying?" Matsuda said, crossing his arms. "There's no evidence to prove that what he's telling us is true."

"L," Mogi said, turning in his chair to face Light. "Near's on the line again. He wishes to speak with Mello now. He's been very consistent."

Light let out an abrupt groan and switched the line. "I'm transferring him over to Soichiro's cell-phone." _This is bad. If Mello hands over important information to Near, then that could result in Near coming to the conclusion that Kira is someone in the task force…what am I supposed to do?_

* * *

Soichiro's mobile buzzed in his pocket. He raised a questioning eyebrow and pulled the phone from his jacket. He shot a glance at Mello, who simply shrugged. Soichiro flipped the phone open and placed it against his ear. "Hello?"

"_This is N of the SPK, I wish to speak with Mello. It's urgent."_

"Oh, um, well alright…" Soichiro put the phone on speaker and placed it on the table top in front of them.

"_Mello."_

Mello sneered bitterly. "Near."

"_It's come to my attention that you are now under custody of the Task Force, correct?"_

Mello glanced at Soichiro and grinned. "Well, let's just say we've come to an organised agreement."

"_Alright then…I don't know what it is you're exactly trying to do…but at least you're not dead. So tell me, Mello, what is it that you know that I don't?"_

Mello snickered spitefully and crossed his legs again. _Considering everyone in the Task Force is practically against me at the moment, I guess gaining the protection of the SPK wouldn't be a bad move. _"So far, I've concluded that Kira is someone within the task force and that he's most likely to be L. I've also concluded that two of the rules in the notebook are fake. I'm sure you're smart enough to figure out which."

Near was silent for a long while before he spoke again. _"It's the 13 day rule, isn't it…though, you have no prof to show what you're saying is fact."_

"But I intend on doing so." Mello insisted. "Near, as leader of the SPK, will you grant me permission to use the notebook on someone?"

Soichiro's eyes widened. "Wait, what?!"

Near ignored Soichiro's outburst and proceeded to peruse. _"I don't have that authority Mello, you know that. The notebook is in the hands of the Task Force…but I see what you're trying to do. You want to prove your theory by writing someone's name in the notebook, and if you don't die within 13 days, that'd be strong enough evidence to hold L as a prime suspect."_

"My thoughts, exactly." Mello glanced at Soichiro who had turned a slight crimson colour.

"No, Mello, the Task Force will not allow you to use the Notebook! We simply can't allow you to kill someone with it!"

Mello rolled his eyes. "I thought you wanted to catch Kira. I thought that was the reason you confined me. If you don't let me prove my theory, you're practically letting Kira win!"

"_Actually, Mello, I honestly don't think I need to see you use the notebook." _He raised an eyebrow inquisitively. _"If you're willing to die to prove your theory, then that's good enough for me. I believe you." _Mello shook his head and inclined back in his seat. _"Soichiro, I'll be honest with you. I too have come to suspect L number 2 to be Kira. The NPA has already directed their investigation towards your group."_

"This is ridiculous!" Soichiro bellowed.

"_It's a mere suspicion Soichiro, there's no need for that, however I'm sending one of our agents over to look after Mello whilst he's in the hands of the NPA. He's already seen Mello's face before. In fact, they're already well acquainted."_

"Waitwaitwaitwait, hold the fuck up." Mello interrupted. "Who the fuck are you sending over?"

"_Matt. He's already in Japan. I thought since you're investigating the Police, Mr Matthew might be of use to you. I'm also using him as a dummy so that you and I can communicate without you having to leave confinement…of course, only if the Task Force permits it."_

Soichiro thought for a moment and cleared his throat. "I suppose there's no harm in it. Fine, this 'Matt' can cooperate with us in the investigation."

"_Thank you."_

**TBC**


	3. To the Agents

_**Two days later…**_

Aizawa rested his chin on his hand as he stared blankly at the empty monitors. Light, Mogi, Matsuda, Ide and Soichiro sat around the coffee table at the other end of the room. They'd all decided to take a few minutes away from the Kira case, to simply relax and regain sanity. Though, for some reason, Aizawa's mind kept wondering back to the same subject…

_Both Mello and N believe that Light is Kira. Even Ryuzaki believed he was Kira. It wouldn't be a bad assumption to come to the same conclusion…I don't want to believe it…but what if Ryuzaki had been right? Isn't it a little too coincidental that Ryuzaki died moments after announcing that he was going to test the Death Note?_

_If Light were Kira…then that would mean he would have killed Ryuzaki before he got the chance to prove the 13 day rule was a fake. It makes sense…but…I just…can't believe it myself. Do I really trust Mello over my own co-workers? Do I really trust a murderer over my friends? Perhaps I should consider meeting with Mello myself…_

"Aizawa, are you alright?" Soichiro asked. "You seem tense. It's been a long day. You should take a break."

Aizawa sighed, debating whether or not it'd be wise to share his thoughts with the rest of the task force…but in the end, he decided against it. "Yeah, it's been pretty stressful these last few days..."

"But on the bright side, with Mello in confinement, there's no way he can cause any more trouble. That should make our lives easier, right?" Matsuda said optimistically.

"I guess…unless Mello's actually planning to do something radical whilst in confinement." Light sighed, placing his cup of lukewarm coffee onto the coaster by the table. "I know, it sounds hard to believe with the man being chained up and practically unable to move…but this is MELLO we're dealing with. He's practically uncontrollable. We can't be too relaxed with this situation."

Soichiro nodded his head. "You're right. We can't let anything slip by us."

* * *

"_Matt. If I told you to shoot, would you?" Mello asked._

"_Probably."_

"_That's not good enough. If I say shoot, you shoot. It doesn't matter what situation we're in. From now on, you follow as I do and do as I say. Never question my logic. I need to know you trust me."_

"…_Okaayyy then."_

"…_Do you trust me?"_

"_Nah, not really. But that's all good. I don't need to trust you to follow orders."_

* * *

Soichiro sat opposite Mello, who had been rid of his restraints. Matt stood at the other end of the confinement unit, playing on his DS with great concentration. Soichiro had to admit, Mello seemed to have gained an ounce of confidence due to being free from his bonds. He sat with his legs crossed and his body slouched into the chair. He also held a chocolate bar within his right hand (that Matt had brought for him.)

"Well Mello, what was it you wanted to—"

Mello cut him off before he could finish his sentence. "I want permission from the NPA to visit N. No offence, Mr Soichiro Yagami but I'd rather work with the SPK than with the Japanese Task Force. Let's be honest here. The Task Force hasn't moved in the past week or so, which is yet another reason why I should suspect 'Light' of being Kira. Furthermore, no one here is actually going to listen to what I say, so why should I even bother? It's not like any of you believe in my theory. At least N took me into consideration."

Soichiro narrowed his eyes a little. "You know perfectly well I can't do that." Mello rolled his eyes as he snapped a piece of chocolate off with his teeth. "You are under the confinement of the NPA and that is how it will stay until your death sentence after we've caught Kira."

Mello stood from his chair and slammed the palms of his hands down violently onto the face of the table that separated them. "Fine, just kill me now and be done with it! I'm tired of this game!"

"Mello—"

"Seriously, just stop, okay. Our deal was that you let me help you on the Kira case, and since that's not happening, you're obviously not a man of your word! So why don't you just kill me?"

Soichiro stared at Mello for a moment, before he sighed to himself and removed his glasses. "You're right. I know you've been excluded from the Kira investigation, but we're not going to kill you. As far as the rest of the world is concerned, you're a member of the Task Force now. No one can lay a finger on you until the Kira case is put to an end."

"If you really want to prove that then let me see the Death Note."

Soichiro seemed surprised by the request. "Mello I—"

"You said I'm on the Task Force now, so I have a right to examine the evidence." Mello stated. "I promise I won't try to use it on anyone. I just need to see it."

_Well…if Mello truly is one of us now, then I have no choice but to let him see it…but what is he planning to do with it? Why would he…_

* * *

"What's he doing?" Ide questioned.

"We can't give it to him!" Matsuda stated. "We don't know what he's going to use it for!"

"But we have no choice. He's meant to be co-operating with us. We'd be breaking our deal if we didn't hand it over." Mogi informed.

Light bit his tongue to stop himself from saying something he'd regret. _I can't just tell them not to hand it over. That'd look suspicious…but I can't simply let Mello take the Death Note! What is he doing? What does he want? What is he getting out of it? Damn it…_

"I think we should give it to him." Aizawa said. Everyone turned to him in shock.

"Are you kidding?! That's insane!" Matsuda shouted.

"Mello wouldn't ask for the Death Note if he didn't think it was important. Maybe he's trying to prove something…I'm sorry Light, but…there's a small part of me that believes Mello's theory." Aizawa explained.

"What's wrong with you Aizawa?! You can't seriously be buying Mello's story!" Matsuda had turned bright red in frustration.

"No, Aizawa's right." Light said. Matsuda turned to him in confusion. "Considering the original L had believed me to be Kira, it's not completely idiotic to believe that Mello could be telling the truth." Light looked down at his feet. "Mogi, could you deliver the Death Note to Soichiro please."

* * *

Soichiro stood opposite Mello, the Death Note in his left hands. He cautiously handed it over to Mello, who snatched it from his grasp. Mello turned to the back of the Note Book and read the last rule out loud. "If a person makes this notebook unusable by tearing it up or burning it, all the humans who have touched the Death Note shall die." Soichiro raised an eyebrow at Mello, who shot him one last look, before pulling a red lighter from his back pocket.

"Wait, Mello what are you doing?!" Soichiro bellowed.

"I'm proving my point!" Mello stated. Before Yagami could snatch the book back, Matt held a gun directly to his head. "If you dare try to stop me, Matt will kill you, and then burn the book himself."

"Mello stop!" Soichiro thundered.

"I know this rule is a fake and I'm trying to prove it! Just…trust me." He flicked the lighter on and held the small spark of flame beneath the left corner of the book. The fire then spawned across the pages of the book, and soon enough, it was set to nothing but flames. Mello dropped the destroyed book on the ground and crossed his arms, watching as the flames died down. Soichiro stared in shock as Mello stamped the remaining flames out with the heel of his foot. Mello closed his eyes, as though he were waiting for something. When he opened them, he glanced at his watch on his wrist and smirked. "If that rule I just read out was true, then shouldn't you and I be dead by now?" Matt lowered his gun and placed it in his back pocket. "Do you believe me now?"

"That was…insane!" Soichiro screeched. "You could have gotten us all killed!"

"But I knew no one was going to die before." Mello stated. "I knew no one was going to be harmed."

"So…you really were telling the truth."

**TBC**


End file.
